Blog

I admire people who get up early. In my opinion, they get to experience the best part of the day and can accomplish more by sun-up than other folks do by sun-down. I don’t always get up early, but when…

When it comes to trail adventures, for us there's only one thing better than a good guidebook, and that's local knowledge straight from the source. So I feel fortunate that in July I was able to visit my sister Barbara…

The North Carolina side of Great Smoky Mountains National Park is often called its quiet side. Perhaps most well known is Bryson City's Deep Creek Campground and trailhead, but did you know there are two entrances to the Park at Bryson…

Once spring arrives in the Blue Ridge, it’s a non-stop parade of wildflowers blooming nearly everywhere. On show beginning in mid-June: rhododendron maximum or rosebay rhododendron. This is the tallest and showiest of the three rhododendron species native to our…

As we move into prime hiking season, it's important to remember human impact on the environment and how it can be minimized, whether you're on an extended backpacking trip or a simple day hike. These seven principles provide guidelines for…

We’ve had a lot of requests for Jim Parham’s Waterfall Hikes of North Georgia this week. All the rain this spring has made for spectacular waterfalls in the region. That got us thinking: What defines a waterfall? To answer that question, here’s an…

Jim Parham has been out on the trail this spring, doing field work for a backpacking overnight guidebook to north Georgia. Along the way, he's had time to ruminate on an essential piece of adventure gear—one that might surprise you. Every…

Trekking Poles. Certainly you can hike without them, and many folks do. However, if you want to save your knees for many years of hiking to come; are planning a trip that includes lots of rocky, rooty, steep terrain; or…

We seem to have wildflowers on the brain here at Milestone Press. This may be because Jim Parham is nearing the end of a five-year book project titled Wildflower Walks & Hikes: North Carolina Mountains, due out next year. But the other reason is…